If registered voters exceed 1200:

One queue for men and women at PC polling booths

by Mohammed NAALIR

Moves are under way for men and women to queue in one line to cast their votes at the upcoming Provincial Council elections, if the number of registered voters at a particular polling station exceeds 1,200.

The Department has limited the number of electoral lists issued to polling stations this year.

Five to six electoral lists were distributed to each polling booth in previous years, according to Deputy Elections Commissioner, Administration M.M. Mohammed.

The Elections Department plans to make a change in the polling stations where the number of voters exceed 1,200 at the upcoming Sabaragamuwa, Eastern and North Central Provincial Council elections, Mohammed said.

Meanwhile, Commissioner of Elections Mahinda Deshapriya is considering the possibility of allowing Muslim men and women to queue separately as was the practice earlier, the Deputy Commissioner said.

This year, all details of voters have been recorded in CDs, thereby reducing the necessity of issuing lists.

Accordingly, if the number of voters is below 1,200 they will go in one queue to cast their votes while a second queue will also be set up if the number of voters exceeds 1,200.

The Provincial Council elections in the Sabaragamuwa, Eastern and North Central Provinces will be held on September 8.